Month: July 2012

The first weekend of July was our biennial Butterfly Weekend. Various local organisation had a presence at this event, held on the grounds of Juniper Hall. While the focus was on butterflies, with butterfly walks and species on show, various other kinds of plants and animals were also on show, including ferrets, as you can see above. We were all surprised to learn that ferrets are currently the third most popular pet in the US, and while they haven’t quite taken on in Europe to the same extent, interest in these mammals is growing here.

Shown here is Chris with my favourite animals of the weekend, bees! I’ve always had a fascination for the social insects and the culture of bee-keeping and I’m always happy to learn more from those involved. The device above is a show-hive, used for teaching the rudiments of bee-keeping and for educating the general public in the functioning of a hive.

Bats were also represented, and the general public were keen to get close to these little-seen animals.

Butterfly experts and enthusiasts were on hand to talk us through recent catches, both from their own efforts and from Juniper Hall’s own moth trap, which continues to bring forward impressive specimens. As ever, the experts were more interested in the cryptic micro-moths than the showy and colourful hawk-moths.

We were disappointed with the weather during the weekend, and many of the activities were carried out indoors. Regardless, the event was a success with a variety of wildlife exhibits, musicians, food and drink, and products available from local artists and artisans. The FSC was represented by a stall staffed by various team members who were only too happy to talk to the public about what we do. Perhaps inevitably, Louise the tarantula, who also made an appearance at the stall, hogged a lot of the attention.